The Crimson Mask
by DigiDawg2
Summary: Ever since pursuing the path of a dark mage, Ashia's life at Elder Academy was, for lack of a better word, lonely. So when one her few friends invites her to a blind date, she jumps at the chance to end some of her loneliness. When things go horribly wrong, a boy with red hair and a red mask comes to her aid. Unbeknownst to her this meeting will snowball into something much more.
1. Chapter 1: And so we met

The Crimson Mask

By DigiDawg

Chapter 1: And so we met

The cold autumn air did little to distract me as I feverishly worked against my bonds. I pulled against the ropes holding my wrists behind my back as the chair squeaked in my efforts. My arms could do little more than shimmy as I slid my shoulders up and down against the rope across my chest; a fruitless effort as the coils neither budged nor loosened. "Hrmmmph mmmmph" I grunted as my own purple ribbons which used to hold my pigtails now were used to muffle my cries as they were tied over my mouth. I tried to wiggle my feet again but they too were tied as well. It was a good thing I was wearing tights tonight or the vile things would've cut into my skin by now. I took a break as I panted thru my nose, hungry for air. I couldn't hold back the tears any more as they streamed down my face. My purple hair rested on the back of my chair as I hung my head in despair as it racked my brain trying to figure out what I had done to deserve this.

A flashback of a few hours ago…

"Well that completes my homework. Now I have all weekend to do..." I paused as I took a look around my dorm. "Nothing... at all..." "When you say it like that, it sounds so sad Aisha-chi" said a purple and white bat which fluttered over and sat on my head. "I didn't mean it like that Angkor. There's nothing sad about having nothing to do."  
"Uh huh...sure it is" teased Angkor. I picked up the bat and gave him a playful nuggie. "Just because you're my familiar doesn't mean that you know everything."

~brriiing~

"Oh well would you look at that?" I teased him as I picked up my cell phone and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hi Aisha, it's me Rena. Are you busy?" I looked back on Angkor and stuck out my tongue in victory. He just pouted and fluttered off to sit on my pillow. "U-um no I'm not busy. What's up?"  
"Well do you remember Raven right?"

"The silent guy?"

"Yeah the cute guy. So guess what happened?"

I thought for a second. She and my other friend Eve would always talk about silly stuff like guys and cute outfit. I'm guilty of it too though I was usually just on the bandwagon when it came to those two. I can only blame my shyness I guess. Especially since I never really get close to people. I'm still amazed how I even know Rena and Eve…

"Aisha! You there?"

"Y-yeah" I replied as she snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Sooooo? Guess". She asked me again.

"Umm he said hi to you?" I said weakly.

"More like agreed to go on a date with me!"

"Eeeeeeeeee, really?!" I screamed in excitement over the news. She's only been swooning over this guy for months now. Her and every other girl in school, so it was amazing that he actually agreed to go out with her. "Geez Aisha-chi, is the news really worth screaming about?" Complained the bat. "Mind your own business Angkor!" I shouted as I tossed his stuffed toy at him.

"Are you arguing with your pet bat again Aisha?" Asked Rena. "Geez girl, you really need to get out of the dorms more, you're going batty in there." Laughed Rena. "That's actually why I called. You see I need you to come out with me tonight."

I was puzzled. "Me, why would you need me to go with you on your date?"

"Errrr, because I was nervous..." laughed Rena thru the phone. I could her sweat mark on her face even from my phone.

"Nervous? Why would you of all people be nervous?" I asked.

"W-well..." she stammered. I felt my patience wearing thin as my eyes dead-paned. "What did you do...?"

"Well...well...I was nervous and when I asked him I uh sort ah..."

"Out with it woman!" I snapped.

"Well since he was with his friend Chung at the time I panicked and asked if he and his friends would like to come with me and my friends to the movies tonight and he said yes!" Rena spilled out hurriedly.

"So wait, Chung is going too?" I asked

"Uh huh" she replied.

"So why don't you ask Eve to go?" I asked her. "You and I both know that she has a crush on Chung, even if she won't admit it."

"Well she agreed to go the minute she heard Chung was coming so she's a go. "Laughed Rena."The only one left is you and if you don't come then their other friend will be left out."  
"So I'm just a place holder?" I cried as rivers of tears fell down my cheeks.

"Don't say it like that, and besides Aisha..." Rena continued to persuade me."But I'm just gonna be a third wheel while you two are busy flirting..." I said as my enthusiasm dropped.

"And that's why I need you there to make sure I keep a level head so this thing goes thru. "And who's to say you won't be doing any flirting of your own tonight too?" Rena hinted. "Well, times a wasting Aisha so I'll see you at the movie theater at eight."

"B-but wait a minute, I never agreed to go and that's all the way in downtown Elder and its seven o clo-"

"I SAID, I'll see you at the movies at eight, Aisha~" Reiterated Rena. I could feel her infamous "death smile" thru the phone so I decided to agree lest I become another one of its poor victims.

"Okay Rena, s-see you there..." Rena giggled sweetly as she turned back into the girl we all know and love.  
"Great, see you there~"

I hung up the phone and sighed as I layed my back down on my bed.

"It sounds like you got some plans tonight Aisha-chi, though it looks like you don't really wanna go..." said the bat. "Its not that I don't want to go... it's just that..." "you want to go on a date too huh Aisha-chi" chirped Angkor. My face instantly flushed red. "Noooooo, t-that's not it at all!" I shouted. "I-I just don't wanna be stuck there while those two have fun flirting with their crushes...while..." "you're sitting there alone?" Questioned Angkor. "Yeah..." I replied in a depressed tone. "Hey, you weren't reading my mind again were you?" "I said I wouldn't didn't I?" He replied. "And besides, I'm your familiar Aisha." He said as he fluttered off the pillow and onto my chest and snuggled."I feel what you're feeling, so I want you to feel happy Aisha-chi." My face was flushed again as my perverted familiar nuzzled my chest. But since he was being sweet I decided to let it pass this time. "Stupid pervert..." I said as I hugged him and kissed his head.

I layed there for a few minutes as I tried to figure out what on earth to wear. I decided to go with my navy blue school uniform instead of the white and brown one I was wearing now. I hoped in the shower and took a quick wash off before getting dressed. I put on a clean pair of off pink candy print tights before sliding on my blueberry checkered skirt over them, stuffing my blouse under it. I took two of my purple ribbons and tied my hair up into two pointy pigtails that hung down to just below my shoulders. I slapped on a bit of perfume. After all, it was supposed to be a date right? When I came out of the bathroom, Angkor immediately sprung up. "Wow Aisha-chi, you look just like a princess." I giggled at the little bat's comment. "Well Angkor I left you some food in your dish there. You be good ok?"  
"Ok Aisha-chi, take care."

* * *

Unfortunately when I got to the bus stop, It looks like I had just missed the bus. "Damn..." I pouted as I kicked a rock. "I guess I could teleport to save some time... too bad I can only do it for short distances..." I say to myself as I make my jumps a down Wally's memorial bridge.

Ten minutes later I had just made it to town. I congratulated myself because normally walking that would take 20-30 minutes on foot, though I expended too much mana because of it. "I'd better just cut thru some alleyways to get there on time." I panted as I walked down some alleyways. The city was bustling this evening; people working late shifts, couples out on dates, cars at stoplights with commuters wearily trying to get back to their homes. Elder…it was a nice little city indeed, even though as of late taxes seem to be on the rise. Wally seems to be getting greedier and greedier every day. I looked up at the half moon, laminating the night sky as I waited to cross the street. "Damn, its already eight o clock...oh well." I thought to myself as the light changed and I crossed the street.

"I guess should get some snacks now since lord knows that movie food is overpriced." I said to myself as I approached Echo's, a classmate of ours shop. Oddly enough, the shop was closed although the shop closes at nine pm, not to mention the lights still on too. "We're friends right? I'm sure she would mind reopening just for me." I thought to myself as I knocked on the door. Oddly, when I grabbed the handle, the door wasn't locked.

"Well that's weird...why would they close the store but leave the door unlocked? I pushed open the door slowly as I crept inside. Looking around, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, other than the fact that the store was closed but the door was still open. "Hey Echo are you still in here?" I called out. "If you're closed you're doing a bad job because you left the front door unlocked~" I teased. There was still no reply, the store had the air of a ghost town and was eerily quiet. I picked up a bag of chocolate peanut butter bites and a grape soda and walked to the counter.

"Hey Echo, how much do I owe you for this?" I called out. Still nothing. Looking around there was nothing out of place... other than no sales clerk. I noticed that the door to the back room that was closed to the public was wide open. "Now whys that wide open?" I said as I went to inspect the door. As I got closer I heard some shuffling going on. "Echo? Is that you?" I called out again as I followed the shuffling to the basement door, which was also open. _This is getting weird now… _I thought to myself as I walked down the stairs.

"Oh...my...god..." was the only thing that fell out of my mouth. As I came downstairs, I was greeted with a disturbing sight. A disheveled lab, complete with scattered papers, open drawers, overturned machinery and spilled fluids were on the floor. "Its like a tornado was in here..." I said as I explored the basement lab. While exploring I noticed the fire escape door the back alley was open. As I went to investigate it I stumbled onto a conversation.

"Let that be a lesson to you lil miss sprocket." Said an unfamiliar voice. "What in the world?" I muttered as I crept up the stairs of the fire escape and into the alleyway. "What am I gonna tell my parents!?" Cried a familiar voice. I snuck up behind a dumpster and peered around to get a better look. "Echo!" I gasped. I watched as Echo was pinned up against the wall by two thugs while a big brawny man was in front of her. From the angle I was in I saw that he had a big curved broadsword at his waist.

"Well miss sprocket, just tell them that you got robbed." Snickered the brawny thug. "Oh and by the way..." he said as he was shuffling around in his pocket."The boss says to make sure you finish up the blueprints for his plans." He says as he pulls something out of his pockets. "He's getting tired of waiting you know." I could hear Echo grumbling while she wrestled against the two thugs hold on her. "How can I do anything with you guys' terrori- ziiiaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" I heard her scream in pain as a blue light in the main thug's hand connected with her stomach. "I'm glad we have an understanding."Echo!" I screamed as I watched her crumple in an unconscious heap on the wall.

"What the hell!?" Yelled the three goons in unison as they turned to me. I instinctively ducked back behind the dumpster hoping they didn't see me. Their footsteps walking towards my location proved otherwise and the firm grip on my shoulder just shut down any hope that they didn't see me.

The brawny thug pulled me out from behind the dumpster as he glared at me. I winced at the sight of his mug as I got a good look at it. His ruffled brown hair hung over his forehead as his bangs almost covered a scar over his right eye as his other eye focused on mines.

"P-p-please... I didn't hear a-anything I-I-I swear!" I manage to get out. "I didn't ask you that." The thug said grimly. I was so petrified, I couldn't stop shaking. "P-please, don't hurt me." I pleaded but his glare remained the same. His iron clad grip on me began to tighten. "Ahh- Oww, stop it! You're hurting me! "I cried."I promise, I don't know anything! Just let me go!"

"Hey Banthus, do we really have to do this? I mean she's just a little girl." Protested one of his thugs. She was probably just one of Echo's friends." Banthus...the notorious thief and outlaw?" I muttered out. "All the more reason to find out what she knows." Said Banthus. "Who knows how long she's been here tonight? Go get the car Bruce." The one called Bruce looked at me and sighed. "Well he has a point cute. I tried eh?" And with that he walked down the alleyway. "No! Wait! You can't do this! Pleas- eeeeeyaaaaaaah!" I screamed before everything turned black.

* * *

A cold breeze howled thru the old warehouse as it woke me from my flashback. I looked up at the blue moon shining its rays thru a window in the ceiling. Despite my situation, its luminous glow among the few clouds and stars was surprisingly calming to me, refueling my resolve to make it out of my ordeal alive. I shuffled my wrists again in an attempt to escape but the ropes were unforgiving as they always were.

"Hey boys." A voice I wish I had never met said. I looked up to see Banthus and his two thugs walking towards me. "It looks like our little princess has woken up." I growled but the ribbons over my lips just muffled any animosity into muffled murmuring as they towered over me. I closed my eyes as I watched Banthus's hand hovered towards me. "Hmmmmph!" I yelped as the pervert was groping my breast. "Damn, they're pretty nice boobs for a brat like you. Your boyfriend must play with these every night." He said as he leered and stared at me in his perversion. I screamed and try to shake him off but the muffled yells only seemed to fuel his appetite. _If I had a boyfriend I wouldn't mind him doing this...all I have is that perverted bat. Ooh somebody help me!_

"Now I'm gonna take your gag off and ask you a few questions and I hope for your sake your answers are favorable." He said as he pulled something out of his pocket. "Otherwise..."

"AAMMMMMMMMPPH!" I yelled as electricity ran thru my body. "You get the message, right?" "Hmmmph! Hmmmmph!" I panted into my gag and the bastard released the taser. That jolt felt like an eternity although it was only a second or two. I wasn't paying attention as he reached forward and pulled the gag out of my mouth. He gripped my chin again as he pulled my face to view his. "Now... what do you know?" He asked grimly.

My face froze in shock and disbelief that they thought that I even knew anything. "W-why do you keep asking me that!?" I screamed as my eyes began to get teary again. "I don't know anything - Eeeeyaaaaaaaaaaah!" I shrieked as he pushed the taser into my stomach again for a few seconds before removing it again. I twitched from the jolt, trying to alleviate the pain with my panting. "What did I tell you about telling stories?"  
"But I'm not!" I cried back.

"Oh yeah? Then why were you in the alleyway tonight hmm?" questioned Banthus as he picked my head up by my hair. "Aaaaah!" I cried. It hurt so much. " If you want it to stop tell me the truth."  
"But that is the truth!" I cried as tears rolled down my face. "I came to the store for some snacks and the door was unlocked, even though it was closed. So since Echo was my friend i didn't think it would be a problem to go inside!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" I wailed as the monster held the taser longer than the last time he shocked me. I hung my head backwards as my eyelids twitched. I don't know how much more of this I can take.  
"So you just happen to wander inside and happened to end up in the alleyway?" He questioned as he hovered his face close to mines. I weakly nodded yes. I watched as pressed the button on the taser, causing it to spark wildly. "Don't fuck with me little girl." He said grimly as he pressed the taser into my leg.  
"Eeeyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" I shrieked as I screamed bloody murder; tears streaming from my eyes.  
"You expect me to believe you heard nothing of our plan?! After you found your way all the way to the alley way and hid there for who knows how long?! Only snoops do what you did!"

"Anybody would do what I did!" I screamed. "I came in and saw that there was something wrong so I followed the noises and murmuring to the alleyway, and then I watched you taser my friend. That's it though. I don't know anything about any plans, I swear!"

"Yeah...Bruce?" I heard Banthus call out to his henchman.

"Yes sir?" replied the thug.

"Go and get the cement." said Banthus as I watched a sadistic smile make its way across his face. "We're gonna give our little girlfriend here some new shoes." My heart sank to my stomach as I heard the insidious intentions for my demise at hand. In a last ditch effort I mustered all of my remaining strength as I tried to escape my bonds. I looked up at the ceiling where the moon shone brightly, even for a crescent.  
"SOMEBODY, ANYBODY, PLEEEASE HELP ME, I DON'T WANNA DIE HEEEL-MMMMMMMPH!

Muffled screams filled the room as I protested the cloth tied around my mouth again.  
"Well that's about enough of that now." snickered Banthus.  
"Ok Banthus, I got the cement, and the pan." Said the one called Bruce as he dropped the pan with a clang. That was the loudest clang I've heard in my life. With that clang, I hung my head in utter defeat.

_So this is it for me huh?_ I thought to myself as my tears rained down, soaking my skirt. _I can't believe my life is over... but why me? All I wanted to do tonight was to try and be happy...to maybe finally meet someone. I mean... I wasn't expecting much with tonight's blind date but...I… I was genuinely gonna try tonight... And now I'm gonna be killed...alone...I'm gonna die...alone?_ I sniffed amongst my sobbing as I was drowning in despair.

_It's not fair..._

"Well let's get her to the river." said Banthus. "We'll do the shoes whe-"

-CRASH- went the glass window in the ceiling.

"What the hell was AAAAAH!" went the three villains. I looked up to see them jump back just as a giant blue glowing blade was about to crash down in front of me.

-SSSHHHHNK!- went the blade as it stabbed the ground in front of me, the tremor upon contact was enough to blow dust, debris and myself included as my chair skidded backwards from the force of the wind.

_What in the world was that?_ I thought to myself as I looked up and gazed at the giant sword planted in the ground.

"This... is un...forgivable..." a voice said from the sword. With that being , a figure of a man, shrouded in shadows, was hanging from the handle of the blade. He then hopped down from the giant handle, landing in front of me in a kneeling position; his back facing me. Bathing in the glow of the blade he rode in on, he stood up to reveal that he was no man but rather a boy, a boy who looked to be around my age.

He then turned around to face me, which shocked me because the face was covered up with a red mask. A mask that was red as his hair which was spiky and layered; framing the mask, which was simple, like a ninja turtle mask; simple but effective. His hair was a little long as i examined they ran down into to ponytails that hung down to his shoulders and complimented his face. He wore a black vest that only covered up to his torso, which I might add was also pleasantly toned. He also wore wide white and black pants. These were all held up with a belt that had something similar to a rune as a belt buckle. I found it odd because it was so late at night in autumn and he didn't seem to be cold. He wore black fingerless gloves which had black belts wrapped around his forearms and a wide broadsword about half his size attached to his waist sideways. He was actually pretty cute in my opinion, even if it was a little weird.

"I'm sorry I'm late miss." He said as he walked over to me. "Can you ever forgive me?"  
"Hrmmmph?" I tried to reply as he asked me the very ridiculous question. _ I don't even know you red mask guy, but please save me from these guys _I thought to myself as I tried to get free again.  
"Hey buddy, who the fuck are you!" yelled Banthus, as he recovered from the shock of the blade crashing thru the ceiling. He began to storm towards us as his lackeys followed suit. I screamed in my gag as I saw him coming towards us.

"Ah yes, these guys..." replied the boy. -Shhhhnk- I was amazed at what i saw. Behind the boy and stopping the thugs in their tracks was a giant ethereal blade that seems to have erupted from a magic circle on the floor.

"Tonight, as payment for what you've done to this beautiful girl here, I will show you the true meaning of the word fear."

I blushed when I heard him say that I was beautiful. The boy with the crimson mask... I didn't know it yet, but we would be seeing a lot more of each other in the very near future.

End of chapter~

**Digi: So with that chapter one is now complete. I hope you all have as much fun reading this as I did writing this. I made sure to make this chapter extra juicy for everyone reading it. As always, reads and reviews are greatly appreciated. I will try to get chapter two up soon or chapter 6 done for an Elsword tale. See you all soon.**

**Aisha: Hehe, Yay X3**

**Rena: So you're the star of this series huh?**

**Digi: Yup she is~  
**

**Rena: So what made you decide to to make Aisha the star this time?**

**Digi: I dont know...shes cute?**

**Rena: But I'm cute too!  
**

**Eve: And me too!**

**Digi: Meep!**

**Raven: ...Idiot...**

**Aisha: Come on girls don't be mean to him.**

**-Eve and Rena stares at Aisha with murderous intent-**

**Aisha: W-well at least he found and fixed the errors when he first posted.**

**Rena: Oh yeah he did didn't he?**

**Eve: Yup the typos are gone**

**Digi: Yay :D**

**Aisha: Well everyone I guess we'll see you all very soon **

**Everyone: Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2: A Mid Autumn Night's Giggle

Chapter 2: Mid-Autumn Night's Giggle

"So you're, gonna teach me, the true meaning of the word fear huh?" bellowed the pompous thug. "I don't think you realize who you're dealing with."

"My sentiments exactly." said the red haired boy as he donned a fighting stance. Banthus just held his gut as he started to laugh. "Bruce!"

"Yes sir!" replied his right hand man.

"Go teach this punk why it's best to mind his own business." Said Banthus as his mouth produced a cocky smile as his henchman made his way to the boy.

"Sorry kid, nothing personal." said Bruce as he began throwing punches at the boy.

"Same to you" replied the boy dodged the first attack. I watched in amazement as the boy nimbly dodged each of the thug's punches. His constant evasion was wearing on the thug's nerves as his punches grew wilder and wilder. I watched as the boy spotted an opening and swiftly connected his foot in the thugs gut.

Bruce sputtered as he gasped for air and held his stomach. I watched in amazement as the boy with the mask rammed his left fist into the thugs gut, stunning him again. He immediately followed up with his right fist. When it connected with the thug's jaw, a magical flame exploded repeatedly like a firecracker, caused multiple hit and burns.

"Yaaaarhh!" screamed the thug as he rolled around on the floor trying to put the flames out. The flames finally stopped as the thug lost consciousness. The boy dusted off his hands as he loomed over the thug confidently. "By the way buddy, when I said it wasn't personal too... I lied."

I looked over at Banthus who was just seething with rage. "Don't just stand there you lazy bastard, go and get that punk!" The other thug gave a quick scared glance at Banthus before yelling and charging at the boy. I watched as the thug pulled out a knife while charging the boy.

_'Holy crap! He pulled out a knife!?' _I thought to myself I watched the event unfold in front of me. _ 'Please be careful whoever you are…' _

But just as before the boy seemed unfazed by the situation as he tackled and rolled over the thug, planting him on the ground. As they were on the ground, the boy thrust his palm into the thug's chest and flipped off of his chest like a springboard.

_What's that?_ I thought as I saw to what looked to be a rune on the chest of the fallen thug he just launched himself off of. When he landed he snapped his fingers as the rune detonated on the thug's chest causing him to bounce from the blast and land in a groaning heap on the floor. "And then there was one..."said the boy as he walked over to Banthus.

"That's it you little bastard!" shouted Banthus as he unsheathed his large curved sword. "Time to die!" And with that, he lunged forward with his blade raised. "Look out!" I tried to warn the boy, but gag reduced everything to muffled pleas. I watched as the boy evaded the massive swipes of Banthus's blade. "Stand and perish!" He shouted as he kept missing the boy. "Not today!" The boy replied as he dodge rolled one of his swipes and rolled past Banthus, tapping his calf with a rune before returning to his feet.

"Hey, what did you- owww!" Yelled Banthus as the rune on his calf detonated. He stumbled as he rested his weight on his sword to hold himself up. "You're gonna have to do a lot better than that to take me out!"

"So it seems..." replied the boy as withdrew his sword and aimed it at the thug. They stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity. Then without warning, Banthus shouted loudly as he tried to bring down his massive blade onto the crown of the red haired boy's head. However, the boy ducked back behind his sword just as the strike connected with his sword and with a quick slash, he countered the blow, staggering Banthus. Bewildered from the counter, Banthus jumped back and regained his composure. "You know what, maybe I've been going about this the wrong way..." Banthus said smugly. "What are you getting at?" questioned the red haired boy. "What I'm saying..." started Banthus as he turned his back to the boy and began to walk off. "Is that, I should've just followed my gut and killed your little girlfriend here from the get go!"

_Did he just say the word kill!?_

No sooner had I finished my thought I watched as he ran full speed at me. I screamed as I watched the beast barreled towards me. I could see the edge of his blade gleam as he raised it. Over his head as he ran. I screamed one more muffled plea as I shut my eyes and prepared for the pain of impact.

"WIND BLADE!"

-SHHHHHHNK-

I opened my eyes to see a glowing magic sword again, this time stained with the blood of the monster in front of me. I seemed to have materialized out of thin air as well. I shivered since this was the first time I ever saw something like this; blood, spilling out of the edges of the blade; Banthus's face wrenched in pain as he tried to pull the blade out.

"D-damn… you…you…s-stupid girl…" sputtered Banthus as he struggled to stand up. "Don't blame her for your actions." said the boy as he waved his hand, causing the magic blade to disappear. "Aaahhhrrgh!" cried Banthus as he grabbed his wound and fell backwards panting heavily. "You forced my hand with that cowardly tactic of yours and now you have to pay the price…" said the boy as he reattached his sword to his waist. "The wound I gave you, though it's a little messy, isn't really fatal unless it goes untreated. Hopefully the police get here in time..." smirked the boy as he walked on over to me. I could hear Banthus mumbling curses as before for he finally gave in to the pain and had gotten quiet.

I sat there as I tried to process the events that just unfolded in front of me. _He...did it. He really did it._ I thought to myself as he walked over to me. _I'm saved! _ I began to tear up out of pure happiness as I smiled under the gag. The boy caught wind of my tears welling up as he got closer. "Oh crap, are you ok?" He said in a concerned tone as hurried over to me. "I'm sorry I took so long to deal with those thugs."

"Mmm mmm." I said as I smiled and shook my head no. I watched him eye me over as he examined the rope work. "Wow...that's pretty tight huh?" said the boy as he tugged on some chords around my chest. I blushed as his tug made the ropes hug my breasts, making them tingle. Flustered, I closed my eyes and nodded in response to his question. I then felt another tingle in my chest as I had my eyes closed. I opened my eyes to see my rescuer's face as red his hair. "A-a-aaah, I'm sorry!" he stammered as he kept tugging his finger at the coil. I looked down to find out that he had managed to get his finger stuck in between the rope and my breast_. How the hell... did he manage...to..._ "Mmmm..." I mewed as I let out a soft moan thru my gag.

* * *

_Oh...my...god...did he just hear that just now?_ I asked myself in my head. I looked up to have my eyes and his locked together, his face now brighter red than his hair. _Aaaaah! He did hear that! Why the hell did I moan like that!?_ Those thoughts and more raced thru my head as we stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. The only thing I could feel was my heart beating rapidly. "Ah, g-got it." He stammered as he pulled his hand out from my chest. In his hand he had a loose end to the knot. "W-well let's get you out of these shall we?"

"Mmhmm." I nodded yes as he began tugging and pulling the knot binding my chest. I let out another soft moan as some of his efforts hugged my chest even more. "Almost...got...it...there!" He said as I felt a release around my chest. "Now we have a little wiggle room." chuckled the boy as he pulled off the coils of rope from under my breast. "Ok lean forward so that I can take that thing off you."

"Mhm~" I giggled as I nodded yes and leaned forward, bending my head over so he can get the knot. _Hehe I was beginning to wonder when he was gonna take this thing off-_

I was cut off from my train of thought when his chest was touching my forehead as he leaned in as well. My body tingled and my face got hot again as I felt his touch behind my neck as he parted my hair with his hands looking for the knot to my gag. _Ooooh, I'm probably all red again. Why are you doing this Aisha?! It's just him touching you? Wait a minute... I'm touching him too! Aaack! _ All these thoughts and more raced thru my head as my face got bright red and little swirls replaced my eyes. "Grrr." I heard the boy growl.

"This knot is really tight." He said as he inched closer to me. _Aaack, he's getting closer! Oh my god what do I do!? What do I do!?_ I panicked as my heart was racing. _I barely knew how to "talk" to boys, let alone touch them. That was always something Rena was better at doing. And with this here it's more along the lines of a hug than anything. Although... his chest is kind of warm...and nice...and...aaack! How'd that get in there? These crazy thoughts...You don't even know him you silly girl..._

"There we go!" Said the boy as he finally undid the knot and the pressure locking up my mouth was free. I let out a sigh of relief as he pulled out my balled up ribbon they used to stuff my mouth. I gasped as I took in some long deep breaths to fill up my lungs. Man, it felt good to get that thing off my mouth. "Pant, thank you...thank you so much ... for saving me." I said to him in between breaths. "No problem." He responded as he smiled at me. "I was happy to do it~." His smile...it was a nice one. It made me feel at ease with all of the craziness tonight. I layed my head on the back of the chair as I rested my eyes. I felt the boy walk around behind me and began to untie the rest of my upper body. Slowly I felt the coils around my upper chest fall down to the ground.

* * *

"Aaah~" I said as I let out another sigh of relief.  
"Hehe, it feels good doesn't it?" chuckled the boy as he kneeled and began working on my wrists. "So who are you anyways?" I asked him. "Isn't it more polite to give your name first when asking someone one their name?" Chuckled the boy as he undid the final knot around my wrists. I shook my arms to get some feeling back into them as I brought them to my lap. "I-I just wanted to know the name of my rescuer that's all." I replied as I rubbed my aching wrists. "But if you insist that I go first then my name is Aisha."

"Well that's a pretty name." He said with a smile. "I like it~"  
"T-thank you~" I replied back as he walked back in front of me and kneeled down to work on my feet. "So now that I told you my name, will you tell me yours? I asked him sweetly as a looked down at him work. "Oh um right. My name is El- ah- I mean I-I don't have a name!" He stammered out while looking away. "Don't have a name?" I replied cynically as my eyes narrowed towards him. "Do you honestly expect me to believe that you don't have a name mask boy?"  
"Yes, yes I do" he replied as playfully he stuck his tongue out at me.

_Grrrr, what's this guy's deal? I just want to know his name, not his social security number!_ "Hmph. Fine, be that way Mr. Mask."

"Mr. Mask?" He responded in a confused tone.

"Well yeah, I don't have anything else to call you, no thanks to you." I reiterated. The look on his face screamed discontent but I, for the first time in a while, was actually having fun.

"Well if that's the case then I think my name should be the Red Mask." He suggested.

"Hahaha" I laughed. "The Red Mask? That's kind of tacky, don't you think?"

"Well I don't see you coming up with any bright ideas?"He replied. I laughed again as I watched him pout.

"Oh all right then" I replied. "Now let's see..." _ Hehe I can't believe I'm having this conversation.~ Ok then let's see. So he wears a mask...which is red...just like his hair is red. Although... _I paused my thoughts as I took another look at his hair again._ His hair...it isn't simply just red... it's kind of fiery... _"like a crimson flame..." I said slowly.

"Huh?" I heard him question me as he undid the final knot on my ankles. "A crimson what?" He said as he stood up, outstretching his hand and gesturing for me to take it. "A crimson mask~" I answer him as I take his hand and stand up.

* * *

"A crimson mask?" He asked bewilderingly. "Yes~" I replied. "The crimson mask...Mhm, that's what I'll call you." I giggled. He pouted at first but then that pout turned to laughter as thought of his new name. His laughter proved to be contagious as I retraced the actuality of what just happened, I too began to laugh out loudly. Honestly, the thought of it, a masked crusader who doesn't know his own name, gets one from the person he rescued? It was priceless. After a few more minutes of laughing, we calmed down a bit. "You know it's kind of funny Crimson." I said as I hugged myself.

"Hmm? What?" He asked.

"I was actually supposed to be on a blind date thing tonight... but after all of this, surprisingly...I'm having a lot more fun." I said as I closed my eyes and smiled. I began to feel stiff from all the time I spent bound. I out stretched my arms as I stood up on my toes as I stretched my weary body. _ Mmmm, this feels so goo- _"Aaack!?" I shouted as my legs gave out and collapsed forward.

"Whoa, easy there!" Crimson exclaimed as he quickly moved in to catch me. My face turned bright red again as I managed to land on his chest of all things.

"Th-thank you…" I replied as I tried to hide my face from his. "Well I know that you've been sitting this whole time, but maybe you should take a seat again? Crimson proposed. "I think all of the adrenaline from tonight is beginning to wear off."

"Well… I am a little tired now that you mention it." I replied. And with that being said, Crimson helped my back to my chair. "So by the way, where are we...and how did you find me?" I asked as I looked at him.

"Well I was supposed check out a lead I got and-"

"A lead?" I asked as I cut him off. "Are you a cop?" I watched as his smile faded. "It would be better for you not to be involved Aisha." He said as he looked away. Puzzled, I gave him a "deer in the headlights" look. "Not get involved?" I replied. "Involved in what?"

"I said don't get involved!" He snapped back at me. I was taken aback by the sudden change of tone. "I'm sorry, but it's for your own good Aisha." He said. "I don't want to see you get hurt."

I stared at Crimson for a little bit as his eyes portrayed his resolve to not tell me anything. I let out a sigh as I decided to let it go. "So I guess after stumbling onto my dilemma, you followed me and here we are now, is that about right?" After giving up the pursuit on what his occupation is, Crimson's demeanor changed back to his earlier light hearted self.

"Yup, that's correct Aisha."

"So um…where exactly is here again?" I asked Crimson as I looked out the window. "I wasn't exactly awake for my little ride."

"Well…" started Crimson. "I tailed them all the way out of downtown. We're actually a few miles off from Memorial Bridge, near Elder Academy, give or take a mile or two."

"So you mean to tell me that I went down town, only to get kidnapped, and then brought all the way back home where I started from?" I asked as the irony of the situation smacked me in the face.

"Well, with all that being said, yeah~" chuckled Crimson. I didn't have any other words for this so I just face palmed while he continued to chuckle. "Man, is it just me or is it cold in here?" I said as I yawned in my chair. '_Whoa…I'm starting to get really tired…' _ I thought to myself as I yawned. It was getting harder and harder to keep my eyes open. I began to shiver as the night chill began to get colder.

"Hey, are you cold Aisha?" Crimson asked as he looked over at me. I looked back at him with a confused look as he seemed perfectly fine which was odd because he was wearing fewer clothes than me and it was almost winter time. "How are you not cold?" I asked Crimson while I was rubbing my arms trying to warm up. "I mean you're wearing a vest of all things. And it doesn't even cover up your stomach."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that~" smirked Crimson. "I'm a Rune Slayer, and I specialize in fire magic." He said as he wore a smile on his face.

_'A Rune Slayer... isn't that a rare breed of magic knight who somehow incorporated the use of runes into their magic and swordsmanship? I thought they were few and far in between. The only one I know of that's around today is Penensio, one of the Red Knights… but he resides in Hamel…' _I thought to myself.

I was awakened from my thoughts as Crimsons hand burst into a small flame, illuminating the area around us. "Oh wow…" I responded in awestruck of the sight. Crimson just chuckled at my reply. "Well yeah. Because of my affinity for fire magic, my body heat is a little higher than normal people, especially around my stomach" he said while rubbing his tummy. "When I just started learning magic I burnt up so many shirts that I ended up just wearing half shirts to save money on my clothing~"

_'I guess he's telling the truth there. I feel warmer already.' _I thought to myself as I watched the flame dance. "Damn police… what's taking them so long?" complained Crimson as he snapped his fingers and a small rune appeared in the palm of his hand. Intrigued, I watched as he clapped his hands together and out poofed a small red blanket. "What the?" I shouted. Where'd that come from?"

"I summoned it from my closet at home, using a summoning rune" he responded. "Pretty neat huh?" He said as he wrapped it around me. I blushed as he wrapped it around me. It was nice and toasty too, as if it just came out of the dryer. "Wow… this is so warm Crimson" I told him as I snuggled inside the blanket. "Thank you so much, this really hits the spot~"

"Hehe, you're welcome Aisha." He responded while scratching his crimson hair.

I closed my eyes as my body enjoyed the warmth of his blanket. I felt my body get weaker as I let its warmth envelope me as more fatigue set it. _'Wow...this feels so good_' I thought to myself as I sat there in bliss. _'It's almost as if he's hugging...me?'_ I was perplexed at the random thought invading my mind again. _'Is this what it feels like to hug a boy? Its feels so safe...and warm.~' _I felt my cheeks get hot as I gave in to the feeling and relaxed even more.

"..sha. Aisha?" I heard my name being called. "Are you ok?" I struggled to open my eyes to see Crimson looked down at me smiling. "I take it you like my blanket?"

"Mmmhmm." I replied as I nodded weakly. I heard him chuckle and I felt him pet my head. "Well I guess you can go ahead and keep that then." He said while he continued to pet me. I wanted to say I wasn't an animal, but I was too weak to do anything about it, not to mention that it was rather enjoyable. No wonder Angkor liked it.

"Well it looks like the cops are here now..." I heard him say as I began to hear a faint sound of sirens. "Well... you take care of yourself Aisha. Don't go investigating shady stuff again ok?"

"Mmhmm~" I replied as I nodded weakly before I peacefully faded off into dreamland.

* * *

I let out a sigh and smiled as Aisha finally fell asleep. _'Poor girl...all of the fatigue finally caught up to her.'_ I blushed a bit as watched her sleeping peacefully in the chair. I watched as her purple bangs caressed her cheek as they rested on the blanket I gave her. '_It's a shame that this happened to you Aisha...you're so beautiful...'_ I thought to myself as I leaned in and kissed her forehead.

"You...and your -cough- little girlfriend...better watch your…-cough- backs..."

I turned around to see that bastard I beat up managed to regain consciousness. "Is that so..."I replied slowly with an under tone of malice in my voice. I slowly walked over to Banthus as I looked him dead in the eye. "Now you listen here..." I said as I placed my foot on the wound I'd inflicted on him. "The only reason you're alive to spout this bullshit, is because I didn't want her to have to witness the sight of me incinerating you." I said over the wailing pleas of the thug. I wrenched and pressed my foot into his wound causing him to cry out louder. "So then...if what you say is true, and if Aisha so much as even stubs her toe..."I continued to speak as I made my point; my body slowly began emitting flames."I will find you, and then you will cease to exist. Do I make myself clear!?"I demanded before I kicked him in his head, knocking him out again. I took a step back as I radiated my phoenix aura. '_Great... I did it again...I lost control… I'm gonna get an earful again when I give my report...' _

"Halt! Elder village police! We have the place the surrounded!" I heard come from outside. _'Well that's my queue.'_ I thought to myself as I quickly threw some runes in the air, using them as footing to jump back out the ceiling I jumped in from. I looked back down the hole as I saw the infantry team make their way to Aisha and the unconscious thugs. "All right! We have the target here and three unconscious men with weapons. I assume that these must be the kidnappers mentioned in the briefing. It's a little weird that the target is in a blanket since she was kidnapped of all things but she checks out, not traps. One of these thugs seems to be severely wounded. Get the paramedics in here pronto! We need to get them to the hospital ASAP!"

Once they got Aisha into the ambulance, I stopped watching them and lied down on the roof, looking up at the moon. '_The Crimson Mask huh?' _I smiled and rested my eyes knowing that Aisha was safe and sound now.

End of Chapter~

* * *

**Digi: and with that chapter 2 is done**

**Elsword: I hope it's not another book again...**

**Digi: I hope not, it tried to avoid that this time.**

**Elsword: That's what you always say. And yet here we are with another book.**

**Digi: Well I just can't help myself when my creative juices get flowing. And besides I owe my fans a nice decent chunk of story to hold them over.**

**Aisha: Yay, I'm saved.**

**Rena: And you also got some lovey dovey time**

**Aisha:~blushes~**

**Rena: too bad you didn't get a kiss tho.**

**Aisha: yeah q~q**

**Digi: But you did get a kiss**

**Elsword: Yeah!**

**Eve: But she was asleep so it doesn't count.**

**Aisha: Yeah! Q~Q**

**Digi: Well, I'll work on that then. And to all my fans and reviewers thank you all very much. It really does mean a lot to have people support you and ask for more. And with that see you all next time. Get ready for Sander in NA people!**


	3. Chapter 3: And So I Awaken (Part 1)

Chapter 3: And So I Awaken (Part 1)

"Aisha...Aisha..." a voice called out to me.

_'Hmm? Who's that?'_ I thought to myself.

"Aisha... sweetie... you don't want to sleep the day away do you?"

_'Sweetie?'_ I questioned myself in my mind. _'But...I don't have a boyfriend...'_ I decided to open my eyes to see what was going on. I looked around in bewilderment as I surveyed my foreign surroundings. I was lying in a bed that wasn't my own and I was in a room I've never been in. "What the heck? Where am I?" I sat up to see that I was covered up in a red blanket. "Hey wait a minute." I say as I examine the blanket. _'Isn't this the same blanket that...'_

"Finally up, eh sleepy head?" A familiar voice asked as I heard the bedroom door creak open. "Huh?" I asked as my jaw dropped in astonishment at the sight of the boy who rescued me, was standing here, and smiling in front of me yet again, in slippers none the less! "Wha-wha-wha-Crimson!?" I stammered as I grabbed the red blanket up to my neck. "What are you doing here!?" I asked him as I he walked in with two mugs of hot cocoa. He was still wearing his mask as well as he placed the mugs on the table.

"I live here silly." He chuckled as he turned around. I shot him a puzzled look as his masked eyes met my own. "Okay... why am I here then?" I questioned him. He paused for a minute as he gave me a look as if I had asked him a stupid question.

"Ahhh, did you forget? You live here too." He said as he sat down on the bed next to me. "What!?" I screamed as I heard the news. "Why would I live here with you!?"  
"Is it so weird for a couple to live together~" he asked me.

"A couple?!" I shrieked.

"Yeah, you're my girlfriend after all~" he replied with a wink and a smile.

"Eeeeeeeeeh!?" I shrieked in a confused tone as I hopped back a bit with my arms in the air.

"Hehe..." he chuckled. "Why is that so surprising babe?"

"Because I don't remember agreeing to be you girlfriend!" I shouted as I planted my hands on my lap while shutting my eyes.

"Don't remember huh?" said Crimson in disbelief. "Well…how about this then..."

"How about wha-mmmph!?" I asked before being cut off by him kissing me. _'Oh my god!'_ I shouted in my head; my eyes met with his crimson red bangs as his lips were softly moving against mines. I felt my brain begin to short circuit as it struggled to process the events unfolding in front of me. I felt my face turn bright red as he kept kissing me. _'Oh...no...Why can't I stop him?'_ I kept asking myself as this his kissing began to escalate; his tongue caressing my lips as they intertwined as if asking permission for entry. I yelled at my body as I felt it lose control as a tingly wave coursed thru it. _'What is this...this feeling?'_ I asked myself again before closing my eyes and surrendering to it.

My body went limp, lost in ecstasy; I let out a soft moan as I felt his hands caress and hold my back. I was even more astonished by how my arms just moved instinctively grabbing hold of him, pulling him in. It was almost as if time had stopped as we kissed. I didn't even notice that we had ended up on my back until we stopped for air. Our eyes locked as he gazed back at me lovingly. Ironically, amongst all my confusion, I felt at ease whilst looking into his eyes. "Remember me now blush berry?~" he chuckled while smiling at me.

"No." I answered back as I smiled at him. "But as far as first kisses go...wow~"

"Hehe, I've actually stopped counting how many times we've kissed hun." he replied while smiling with his eyes closed.

"Aww man! You mean that wasn't our first kiss?" I asked him as I pouted. I watched him blush as I pouted, which was cute at how I managed to make him do that. "If a kiss was that magical...then I wonder what it would be like if we...you know... did it..." I said as I poking my index fingers together while looking away from him. "Oh that?" He said as he chuckled again. "We did that last night. A couple of times actually~ you have such a lovely voice~"

My mouth was open as I could hear the glass shatter in my head as I heard the news that we had done "it", multiple times now, and I couldn't remember not one minute of it!? 

* * *

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I screamed as I sat up straight; my eyes still closed.

"KYYAAAAAAAAH!" I heard two girls scream as my sudden outburst scared the bejeebus out of them.

"Aisha! Aisha!" I heard one of them call out my name.

_'Wait a minute.'_ I thought to myself. _'That voice sounds familiar…' _I weakly opened my eyes to find myself in a different bed this time, a hospital bed it seems; and no red blanket this time. I looked up weakly as my eyes stung from the brightness of the room as if I've been a sleep for a while. When my eyes adjusted to the light, I looked up to see a worried Eve and a teary eyed Rena at my bed side. _'So all of that before...was I just dreaming?'_ I wasn't given enough time alone with my thoughts as a teary eyed Rena lunged at me and hugged my torso.  
"Oww hahaha" I chuckled. "What's this for?" I asked as I looked down at her; my arms lightly returning her hug.

"Don't ever scare us like that again!" She cried as she hugged me even tighter.

"You guys were worried about me?" I asked in a puzzled tone.

"Of course we were worried about you!"cried Rena. Eve walked up closer a petted Rena's hair and her golden eyes looked me over as if she was scanning me. "When we got home from our little outing we went to your dorm to give you a proper scolding." started Eve. "However, when we learned from dorm security that you haven't been back yet, Rena panicked and told Principal Hoffman about it, who in turn called the police in hopes to find you before something grave happened.

"Even Eve was about to go tear up the city to find you!" added in Rena as she continued to sob.

"Yeah..." said Eve as she looked to her side to try and hide the blush in her cheeks. Even though Eve claims not to have any emotions, the lengths she goes thru trying to hide them obviously proves otherwise. "W-well now that you're up let me go get the doctor to come check up on you." said Eve as she quickly scurried out of the room. I saw a smile creep onto her face before she walked out so I guess she was relieved as well. I looked back down at Rena who was still hugging my torso and patted her on the back. "Ok Rena, you can get up now." I said as I smiled. "Anymore hugging and you might land me back in bed." I heard her giggle as she let go and sat back up again. "Hehe sorry about that" she said as she wiped a tear from her eye. "I'm just so relieved that you're awake."

"Aren't you over reacting just a little bit Rena?" I asked her as I chuckled a little bit at the display before me. "I mean, I only slept in for a few extra hours right? There's still plenty of Saturday and the weekend left right?"

"Aisha..." said Rena as she gave me a concerned look. "It's Sunday morning..."

"What?!" I replied as my eyes widened to the shock of this news.

"You've been asleep since they found you 32 hours ago Saturday morning."

"No way..." I replied to the news; worry seeping onto my face as I was trying to come to terms with it all. "How is that even possible?"

"Well to be honest we're not too entirely sure but we wanna find out though." 

* * *

We both turned to the door to see Eve walk inside along with a cheery faced woman who wore her blonde hair in a ponytail behind her. "Hi there Aisha, I'm glad to see that you're awake now." She said with a smile as she held out her hand to me. "My name is Dr. Ariel. Are you feeling ok?" I paused for a second as I looked at her hand. "Y-yeah I'm fine... I'm just confused..." I replied as I took and shook her hand. "Just confused and hungry."

"Well if I was asleep for as long as you were id be pretty hungry too." chuckled Ariel as we all began to laugh. "Hehe, laughter is always the best medicine in my opinion." started Ariel as the laughter died down. "But all joking aside let's get down to business shall we?" I smiled and nodded yes."So doctor, why was I asleep for so long?

Ariel shrugged her shoulders as she sighed. "Well that's where I'm hoping to figure out now that you're awake." I watched as Ariel pulled a walkie talkie and clicked a button. "Yes you can come in now, she's awake." My friends and I shared confused glances with each other as the door opened and a woman with long red hair, red eyes and a confident smirk that just screamed déjà-vu walked in and approached us. "Hello there, you must be Aisha." She said as she outstretched her hand. I nodded yes as I also reached out and shook her hand. "Well my name is Captain Seigheart of the Elder Police Department, but you can call me Elesis if you like." she said with her eyes closed as we shook hands.

_'Well Elesis is a lot easier to say than captain.'_ I thought to myself as smiled with my eyes closed as well. "Well Aisha, I'll be conducting your witness testimony on Friday's events... but first and foremost..." she said as she let go of my hand and bowed her head in front of me. "Please accept my humblest apologies on behalf of the police force!"

"Awah!?" I babbled as I hopped back on the bed with my hands in the air. "N-no, this isn't your fault Miss Elesis." I tried to reassure her. "This was just an unfortunate accident."

"But still, for pain and suffering you have my apologies. It's unacceptable!" She reiterated while she was still bowing.

"No no no, it's all right, really." I replied as I shook my hands and head as I waved no.

"Hmmph!" went Eve who had her arms crossed. "Well if you don't want them Aisha then I'll certainly take them." said Eve in discontent.

"Oh Eve..." added Rena as she looked at her. "I'm sorry Miss Elesis; she's just a bit upset from the whole situation."

"No no, it's ok."Elesis said as she stood upright again. "I completely understand her feelings. But for now, let's get the details of what happened here shall we.

I nodded yes as I rested my hand in my lap. "Ok Miss Elesis, I'm ready when you are."

End of Chapter 3~

**Everyone: Whaaaaaaaat!? **

**Digi: What?**

**Everyone: Why'd you end chapter 3 so abruptly?!**

**Digi: Well…it was getting rather long so I think it would be better to split this one in half.**

**Rena: Hmph, A likely story…**

**Digi: I swear it's the truth, honest I am. Oh and by the way Rena.**

**Rena: Hmm? **

**Digi: -love struck face- Your new Christmas set is so fricken sexy! **

**Elsword: IKR!?**

**Rena: Oh my…**

**Aisha and Eve: Stop drooling you two…**

**Digi and Elsword: NEVAAAAH!**

**Elesis: I thought I raised you better than this Elsword?**

**Elsword: OMG SIS!? WHEN'D YOU GET HERE?!**

**Elesis: When Digi invited me.**

**Elsword: -shakes Digi- DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG I'VE BEEN SEARCHING FOR HER?! WHERE'D YOU FIND HER!? HOW? WHEN? WHY?**

**-Digi has fainted-**

**Elesis: Don't sweat the details Elsword, what matters now is that I'm here now. Oh and btw –wraps her arm around Elsword's neck- I see you've been getting busy while I've been away. You even got to 3****rd**** base with your girlfriend over there. –Looks over at Aisha-**

**Elsword: -blushes madly- y-yeah…that was awesome…wasn't it Aisha?**

**Aisha: ?_? What are you talking about? You haven't showed up at all in the story Elsword.**

**Everyone: You're joking right?**

**Aisha: Um…no.**

**Everyone: …**

**Elesis: Wow… anyways since Digi is out cold, he would like to thank everyone who has given him a review and has enjoyed this story so far. He promises to update part two of this soon as well. Have a good day everyone.**


	4. Chapter 4 And So I Awaken (Part 2)

Chapter 4: And So I Awaken (Part 2)

"Right" she replied. "So when I reviewed the report, my men found you in the warehouse unconscious. Do you have any recollection as to how you got there?"

"Well to be honest with you, I don't know…" I told her. "I pretty much woke up bound, gagged and alone in that warehouse." I said as I recollected the memory; I hugged myself as the fear I felt started to return to me. Elesis just nodded her head as she recorded the notes of my testimony. "Ok then Aisha; let's start again from the beginning. So what were you doing Friday night?" She asked me as she looked up from her notebook. I frowned as I looked down into my lap while I scoured my brain for memories of that night. But before I could say anything Rena butted in.

"Oh well you see Miss Elesis, I had invited eve and Aisha to the movies that night. Unfortunately, she didn't show up at eight like she was supposed to so I didn't think much of it."

"I see." said Elesis as she continued to scribble her notes. "So Aisha you were supposed to go to the movies at eight o clock but you didn't show. So what happened next?"

"Well what happened was I had missed the bus so to save time I made teleport jumps all the way until I had reached downtown." I said as I added to Rena's story.

"I see..." said Ariel as she hopped back into the conversation."All of that mana consumption would be taxing on the body. I can start to see where all of this fatigue came from. But anyway, continue on Aisha."

"Right." I nodded as I replied. "When I got to town I was pretty tired and since I was already late I figured getting some snacks and a drink couldn't hurt. I was nearby Echo's shop so I decided to stop in there. But when I got there, the store was closed or at least, the sign said it was closed. It was odd because all the lights were still on so I knocked on the door, only to have the door slide open."

"So you were at echo's shop Friday night?" Rena asked as she turned to face me. "Yeah, I was." I replied. "You know she has some of the best sodas in town. It sounded perfect at the time."

"Echo?" asked Elesis. "Who's that?"

"Echo Sprocket?" responded Eve. "She's a classmate of ours. Her parents run a convenient store downtown which echo works at part time. It's also a good thing that we're all friends since we get discounts when we shop there."

Ariel seemed to have woken up from a daydream when Eve mentioned Echo's name. "Oh yeah Echo. She was discharged Saturday evening."

"Discharged?" questioned Rena. "You mean she was here too?" added on Eve.

"Yes she was." said Elesis as she put down her notebook. "There was a robbery at that store the same night that Aisha here went missing. Seeing that we now know that you were there, it's safe to assume you stumbled onto something?" winked Elesis as she questioned me. I nodded back as I replied. "Yeah, that's exactly right Miss Elesis. When I walked inside I heard some noise and when I followed it, it led me thru the basement and out of the fire escape. When I reached outside, I saw echo surrounded by three thugs so I quickly hid behind the dumpster. I couldn't hear them from where I was but it seemed like they were arguing." "Arguing huh?" questioned Elesis as she continued to scribble her notes.

"Yeah..." I said as I started my story again. "Then, out of nowhere, the lead thug which I found out to be named Banthus, pulled out a taser and jammed it into Echo's stomach. I in turn yelped at the act in front of me, thus blowing my cover. I tried to hide but they were more perceptive than I gave them credit for. They came down on top of me and pulled me out from behind the dumpster. They asked me if I heard anything and I told them no but Banthus seemed to think otherwise and jammed his taser into my stomach..." I said as I rubbed my stomach. I still felt some pain there as it was still sore from all the taser shocks.

"Ah I knew it!" said Ariel as she brought her fist down to the palm of her hand. "I thought those burns were similar to the ones you get from electricity. Well that certainly does confirm a lot of things." "What kinds of things?" I asked Ariel as I looked up to face her. "Well when we received you Saturday we thought you was asleep, but in actuality you were slipping into a comatose state." Said Ariel as she walked over to my bundle of clothes and opened them up, revealing to everyone the multiple burn marks on them. I hung my head as a sullen look crept onto my face as I recollected those grim memories. "Yeah… that's right. When I came to, I was sitting on this chair, in the middle of a warehouse, bound and gagged. I tried to get out but the ropes..." I said as I rubbed my wrists. "They were too tight. I kept on struggling until those monsters showed up again. The lead thug Banthus removed the gag and insisted I tell him everything I knew... but you can't! You can't tell someone anything on something you know nothing about!" I shouted as I was beginning to relive that awful period of time.

* * *

I could feel tears welling up again in my eyes. Suddenly, I felt a warm presence as I felt Rena hugging me. "It's ok now Aisha, you're safe now." I felt Eve hold and rub my hand. "So I take it when you told them that they proceeded to torture you huh?" I slowly nodded yes to her question. "Those bastards..." I heard eve mumble out. "Yes, truly heartless indeed." started Ariel. " they must've repeatedly shocked you with a taser after that. A taser acts almost like a defibrillator, but it's more to stun someone than to revive your heart. Too many shocks from a taser could put someone into cardiac arrest and kill them."

"Well…when they finally realized I didn't know anything they had planned to do away with me at the river." I said as I looked up at Elesis who was feverishly writing down everything. "Oh my god Aisha! However did you escape?" yelled Rena as she hugged me tighter. "Yes that's the part that puzzles me in all of this." started Elesis as she stopped writing. "When my men arrived on the scene, they found you unconscious in a chair and the thugs were unconscious on the ground. The thugs were severely wounded and you were all wrapped up in this red blanket." said Elesis as she pulled a red blanket from under my pile of clothes. _'That blanket... I thought I had imagined it? But I guess it was real after all.'_ I thought to myself as Elesis handed me the blanket. "So Aisha, how did you escape and defeat your kidnappers?" asked Elesis as she stared at me. "I'm beginning to suspect that there's some sort of story connected to that blanket of yours."

I gripped the blanket and held it close to me as I reminisced on how I acquired said blanket. A faint blush filled my cheeks as I remembered how warm it felt. "Well... after they had gotten tired of torturing me, they were gonna dump me in the river." I heard Eve and Rena both gasp at that news I had just delivered. "Yeah... I had just about given up on life at that point until there was a large crash from the ceiling above me and a boy with red, spiky, layered hair and three ponytails, rode in on the back of a giant blue sword and landed in front of me." Everyone in the room all shot bewildered glances at me as they heard the farfetched statement.

"So you're telling me, that some red haired lad,_ rode in_ through the roof on a giant sword?" asked Elesis again. "Yes, and he wore a red mask over his eyes and had large double bladed broadsword he carried on his back." I said as I continued. "He then fought off the thugs using magic and runes."

"Runes you say?" asked Elesis as she raised an eyebrow; as if the mentioning of this boy using runes had sparked her interest.

"Yes, runes." I replied. "He made quick work of the two lesser thugs as her made runes explode off of them, knocking them out. Banthus didn't like this as all as he drew his sword and began to fight the boy." I unconsciously began to smile as I talked about how the boy I came to know as Crimson, came in and rescued me. It was as if I were talking about a super hero or something. "The boy made simple work out of him though…" I said as I trailed off, my smile faded as I remembered what happened next. "Banthus soon abandoned that fight and ran towards me to cut me down. I closed my eyes as he ran towards me but I heard a loud stabbing sound as I opened my eyes to see Banthus with disgruntled, confused look on his face as he was skewered with a magical blade."

* * *

"Skewered huh?" asked Elesis. I watched as she closed her eyes as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. She seemed to be in deep thought as we lost her attention to whatever was on her mind.

"I guess that would explain the stab wound in Banthus huh?" chimed in Ariel. My friends and I all did a double take at Ariel when she said that. "What do you mean, _that explains the stab wound?_" Commented Eve as she was the first one to recover from the shock.

"Well I treated them around the same time Aisha was brought in." She responded.

"You treated those…those beasts?!" asked Rena, who was daunted at the fact that Ariel treated the ones who tortured me. Ariel just smiled with her eyes closed as a sweat bead formed on the side of her cheek as the let off a light chuckle. "Well... I _am _a doctor you know. I can't just, _not treat someone,_ based on personal feelings. I have to treat everyone who hobbles into these hospital doors; scum included." I could feel Rena's aura of doom begin to fill the room as she battled with Ariel's logic.

"Now let's just simmer down ok?" suggested Elesis as she hopped out of her thoughts. "As much as I'd love to just let filth rot, due process is due process, and I can't prosecute them if they're dead. So yes, we bring them here and the hospital provides treatment so we can take them to jail later." I could see Rena struggling to repress what she wanted to say, but seeing that Elesis and Ariel did make some good points, she couldn't really do anything other than pout. "Anyways Aisha, about your red haired hero... does he have a name?"

* * *

_'Does the Crimson Mask count as having a name?' _ I thought to myself as I hugged the red blanket. It was surprisingly soothing to my nerves. "Well the funny thing is...well... he didn't have a name." I said as i closed my eyes and smiled; a sweat formed on the side of my face as there was an air of silence caused by my awkward answer.

As usual, Eve was the first one to break the silence by filling it with her nasod logic. "Come on now Aisha! That's absurd! You mean to tell us this guy has no name?" I just looked down at my lap and hugged the blanket some more. "Yeah, I know it sounds weird, but after he saved me he wouldn't tell me his name. So... after some brainstorming together, we decided that his name would be The Crimson Mask." I said with a smile; a blush unexpectedly filling my face.

"The crimson mask huh?" asked Elesis with a smirk that was sickeningly familiar. "So after you two thought a name, what happened next?" Thinking back to how I lost my strength and landed on his chest caused me blush some more as my body remembered the feeling.

"Aisha? You've been hugging that blanket pretty closely ever since you got it and now your face is all red." commented Rena. She gave me a look insinuating that she was onto something. "Are you _sure _there wasn't anything else that happened to you Aisha?"

"N-nothing happened!" I shouted as my face turned as red as a cherry. "I-it's just that I...don't remember what else happened because I passed out shortly after we came up with his name."

"Uh huh..." remarked Rena "sure you did."

"Now now girls, it's not that serious." said Elesis as she tried to defend me. "I got more than enough information here for my report. Thanks a bunch girls"

"No problem." said Eve as she spoke for us all. "But please, do hurry and get those men out of this place and into a cell."

"Will do" responded Elesis as she gave her eve a thumbs up. "Well I must be going now. I'll give you a call if I need you for anything else and if you need anything, don't hesitate to give me a call." I smiled and nodded at her as she began to walk out of the room.

"I'll call you when the thugs are ready for pick up Elesis." said Ariel as we all waved goodbye to Elesis as she waved back as she walked out. Ariel then let out sigh and smiled at us. "Well I'm glad that you're feeling better Aisha. When you're ready, you can come down to the main desk and sign out ok." And with that, Ariel waved goodbye to us and walked out of the room as well.

"Well I guess if you're feeling better how about we go and enjoy the rest of our weekend huh Aisha?" suggested Rena as she smiled at me. "Sounds good to me guys." I replied back with a smile. We all giggled together as we were relieved that this ordeal was over. I think a little RnR is just what the doctor ordered for today. 

Meanwhile outside of the Hospital… 

I placed my key into the keyhole and opened the door to my patrol car. As I placed my notebook in the passenger seat I picked up my cell phone and strolled through my contacts. _'Ok then let's see...'_ I thought to myself as I hit the contact marked "little bro" and pressed the call button.

"Um...hi sis..." said the boy who picked up. "What's up?"

"Really? Is that what we do now?" I asked him.

"Huh?"

"The Crimson Mask?" I responded to him.

"Uh oh..."

"You can say that again." I responded.

"You know?"

"Mhm" I nodded as I responded

"Uhhh sorry sis..." he groaned. I just let out a little sigh.

"Look Elsword we'll talk about this when I get home, ok?"

"Ok..." he said in a disappointed tone before hanging up the phone. I let out another sigh as I started the car and looked at the rear view mirror. _'Oh well. I guess it could be worse…'_ I thought to myself as I pulled out of the parking spot and drove off.

End of chapter~

* * *

**Elesis: And with that, the chapter finally ends. Man that was a mouthful.**

**Aisha: It sure was :(**

**Digi: How do you think I felt writing it? **

**Elesis: True… GG there Digi**

**Digi: Thanks –Arthritis five's Elesis-**

**Rena: well at least we got some lines this time right Eve.**

**Eve: Yup, rather enjoyed that actually.**

**Aisha: Hey Digi?**

**Digi: Yes? –Rubs IcyHot on his wrists-**

**Aisha: Well some well some of the readers, myself included, have been wondering when I'm gonna kicking some butt?**

**Digi: Well I do love everyone who's been enjoying the story so far. So I guess I'll explain things a bit. Well I'm still fleshing out the story so I haven't gotten to any real fighting yet. I'm still in the character development stage of things, if that makes any sense.**

**Aisha: Well I guess that makes some sense. Some people think I'm a Dark Mage though. **

**Digi: Well thanks to the brilliance of the character limit in the story description section I can see why. But Aisha in this story is a VP, a fledging VP to be exact so she's still getting used to it, which I hope to do a better job explaining next chapter. **

**Aisha: Ah ok then Digi. Well hurry up and recover and get back to work on chapter 5.**

**Digi: Yeah…I also need to work on getting my girlfriend the Grace Fairy set for her Aisha… stupid over priced items…**

**Rena: Oh yeah? ^-^ How many pieces did you get so far? –Hugs Digi from behind-**

**Digi: ^/^ Oh well… I managed to get her the tops, bottoms, the gloves and the stockings 3 I also got her Lost space hamel bottoms and shoes as well.**

**Rena: Oh wow you've been busy huh? That's really sweet of you though. She must love you a lot; lucky girl. I wish you was my boyfriend~**

**-Somewhere Raven feels a pain in his heart-**

**Raven: 'There's a disturbance in the force….'**

**Chung: Stop talking to yourself and get back to training Raven!**

**Digi: Well she has a Rena of her own so I guess I kind of am your boyfriend in a way~**

**Rena: Yay~ now you can buy me stuffs~ **

**Digi: What?**

**Aisha +Eve: What?**

**Raven: -Kicks open the door- WHAT TREACHERY IS THIS!?**

**Rena: Until next time everyone~**


End file.
